St. Landry democrat., 1887-09-24

saddle bags A highwayman sprang out
from the thicket and put his hand
out toward the gold, when White
field turned upon him and said THAT
belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ, touch
it if you dare" and the villain fell back
empty handed into the thlcket. y, the
power of conscience! If offended, 1t be-
comes Gods avenging minister. DO not
think that you can hide any great and
protracted sin in your hearts. In an UNI
guarded moment it will slip Oil OF the
lip, or some slight occasion may Tor
moment set ajar this door OF hell that
you wanted to keep closed. But suppose
that in this life you hide it, and you get
along with that transgression burning
in your heart as a ship on fire within
for DAYS may hinder the flame from
bursting out by keeping down the hatch
ways, vet at last, in the Judgment, that
iniquitv will blaze out before the throne
of God and the universe.
Furthermore: learn from this subject
the inseparable connection between all
events however remote. Lord Hastings
was beheaded one year after he had
caused the death Of the Queens children,
in the very month, the very day, the very
hour, and the very moment There is
wonderful precision in the Divine judg-
ments. The universe is only one thought
of God. Those things which seem frag-
mentary and isolated are only different
parts of that one great thought. How
far apart seemed these two events-Jo-
seph sold to the Arabian merchants and
the rulership of Egypt! Yet you see in
Hn1 tnH
the two in one plan. SO all events are
linked together. You who are aged can
look back and group together thousand
isolated. One undivided chain of
events reached from the Garden of
Eden to the cross of Calvary and
thus up to Heaven. There is rela-
ton between the smallest insect that
huns in the summer air and the arch
angel on his throne God can trace
direct ancestral line from the blue jay
that last spring built it's nest in tree
behind the house to some one of that
flock of birds which, when Noah hoisted
the ark's window, with whirl and dash
of bright wings went out to sing over
Mount Ararat. The tulips that bloomed
this summer in the flower bed were
nursed of last winters snow flakes. The
furtherest star on one side the universe
could not look to the furtherest star on
the other side and say: You are no
relation to me-" for from that
bright orb voice of light would
ring across the heavens responding:
Eyes, yes; we are sisters" Sir Sidney
Smith in prison was playing lawn tennis
in the yard and the ball flew over the
wall. Another ball containing letters
was thrown back, and so communication
was opened with the outside world, and
Sidney Smith escaped in time to defeat
Bonaparte;s Egyptian expedition. What
a small accident connected with what
vast result Sir Robert Peel from a
pattern he drew on the back of pewter
plate got suggestions of that which led
to the important invention by which
calico is printed. Nothing in Gods
universe swings at loose ends. Acct
dents are only Gods way of turning a
leaf in the book of His eternal
DEGREES From our cradle to our
grave there is path all marked
out. Each event in our life is
connected with every other event in our
life Our loss may be the most direct
road to our gain Our defeats and vic
tories are twin brothers. The whole d.
rection of your life was changed by
something which at the time seemed to
you tritle, while some occurrence which
seemed tremendous affected you but lit
tie. The Rev. DR.. Kennedy, of Basking
Ridge, n. j., went into his pulpit one
Sabbath and by strange freak of memory
forgot his subject and forgot his text and
in great embarrassment rose before his
audience and announced the circum-
stances and declared himself entirely un-
able to preach; then launched forth in a
few earnest words of entreaty and warn
ing which resulted in the outbreaking of
the mightiest revival of religion ever
known in that State, revival of religion
that resulted in churches still standing
and in the conversion of large number
of men who entered the Gospel ministry
who have brought their thousands
into the kingdom of God. Gods
plans are magnificent beyond all
comprehension. He molds, turns and
directs US, and we know it not. Thou
sands of years are to Him but as the
flight of a shuttle. The most terrific oc-
currence does not make God tremble, and
the most triumphant achievement does
not lift him into rapture That one great
thought of God goes on through the CEN
turtles, and nations rise and fall, and eras
pass, and the world itself changes, but
God still keeps the undivided mastery,
linking event to event and century to
century. To God they are all one event,
one history, one plan, one development,
one system. Great and marvellous are
thy works, Lord God Almighty!
Furthermore: we learn from this story
the propriety of laying up for the future.
During seven years of plenty Joseph pre-
pared for the famine, and when it came
he had a crowded storehouse. The life
of most men in worldly respect is Gi-
vided into years of plenty and famine.
It is seldom that any man passes through
life without at least seven years of plenty.
During these seven prosperous years your
business bears rich harvest You hardly
know where all the money comes
from it comes so fast. Every
bargain you make seems to turn
into gold. You contract few bad
debts. You are astounded with large
dividends. You invest more and more